Syria has been suffering for years due to its internal conflict, and around 400,000 people have died in the war.

The world is watching expectantly for the messages the US and North Korea sent to each other.

Indeed, there is no shortage of bad news. Everyday, the mainstream media will tell us about a new murder, a new crisis, how bad things are going in the world economy, how so many people in the world struggle everyday to survive, or how much corruption is affecting our lives. The gigantic problem with this is that there is plenty of evidence that the media’s enormous and disproportionate focus on bad news leads to anxiety, depression, helplessness and even isolation. It shapes a reality that is not totally true, affecting the way we think and see the world, and creates the perception that there is no much we can do to stop or avoid damage and revert pessimistic trends.

the media’s enormous and disproportionate focus on bad news leads to anxiety, depression, helplessness and even isolation.

In an effort to re-route this mindset, positive news magazines have started to flourish, showing us that there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic, that the world is not in such an apocalyptical shape, that the human being is not such a terrible creature and that there are indeed many things to feel proud of, that we can be better than we are, and that a better future is actually possible. Indeed, seeds are already starting to sprout.

Reasons to believe a better world is possible

Many good things are happening right now, which the media giants are not mentioning of highlighting enough: poverty is possibly at its lowest point history; charitable giving is growing; renewable energies are flourishing worldwide; the so-called “happiness science” is making its way into schools, and we are trying to revert the damage to the nature we ourselves have caused.

Despite clear evidence, many of us are still unaware that worldwide poverty is dropping, and is at its lowest point in the last 200 years! In 1990, 43% of the population in developing countries lived in extreme poverty. By 2000, that percentage had fallen to a third. By 2010, poverty had been pushed down to 21%. This means that in 20 years, the global poverty rate was cut in half.

3. Kindness is growing. Charitable giving continued its upward trend in 2015. For the second year in a row, total giving reached record levels. According to Charity Navigator, this is the sixth straight year that giving has increased and the second straight record-setting year, following 2014’s total of $358.38 billion. Clearly, this chart proves that it is true kindness and happiness are related, and that kindness boosts happiness!

4. Although we still have a way to go, we are getting closer to achieving literacy worldwide, which means more jobs, opportunities and freedom for people.

5. Positive education, which is the combination of traditional education with the study of happiness and well being, is now being pushed in schools “to promote flourishing or positive mental health within the school community”. Happier kids have bigger chances of becoming happier adults. And happier adults, may well make out for happier communities – something we badly need.